


The Halloween Costume

by Wintergrew



Category: Banana Fish (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Halloween, Halloween Costumes, Happy Ending, Human/Vampire Relationship, M/M, Undead, Vampire Ash, Vampires, Zombie Shorter, Zombies, yut lung and Eiji are friends
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-06
Updated: 2019-10-18
Packaged: 2020-11-25 22:31:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,728
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20919695
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wintergrew/pseuds/Wintergrew
Summary: On Halloween night, Eiji finds himself going home with a handsome man in a vampire costume. Turns out, it isn't just a costume.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is entirely based on the new Halloween art. I just wanted to write a story based off of it for the month of October. It will be a few chapters long.
> 
> Don't worry, despite the premise Ash (nor anyone else) will kill Eiji. Put the happy ending tag so no one has to be too worried.

_ Eiji was a giggling mess. He always did get really giggly under the influence of alcohol. _

_ It was Halloween night, and here he was. Dressed in a costume at some stranger’s extremely nice New York apartment on his large bed. Not just any man, but an incredibly  _ handsome _ young man. Tall, blond, stunning green eyes. He had no idea how he lucked out so much that night. _

_ The other man--Ash, he learned was his name, came close to him, hovering over where Eiji sat on the side of the bed. Ash raised a hand and gently bent his neck to one side to get access to his neck before bringing his mouth to it. _

_ The feeling of lips brushing Eiji’s ticklish neck made him giggle harder. Ash pulled away. _

_ “Sorry,” Eiji giggled, wiping a tear away, “I don’t...I don’t do this often.” _

_ Ash looked him in the eyes. His green eyed stare had a sobering expression that Eiji couldn’t read. _

_ “I have.” _

_ \--- _

**One week earlier**

“But Sing--”

“Nope,” Sing crossed his arms, “We’re gonna go and get hammered. The way adults in America are  _ supposed  _ to do Halloween.”

“But you aren’t even old enough,” Eiji pointed out with a frown as he grabbed a sandwich from the university cafeteria.

“When’s that ever stopped me?” he smirked as he grabbed a salad wrap.

“One day you are going to get in trouble with that,” Eiji told his younger friend with a frown, “I don’t want you to ruin your scholarships.”

“Dude  _ relax,” _ Sing said, rolling his eyes as he paid the cashier, “It’s  _ normal _ for college kids here in America to use fake IDs.”

Eiji knew he shouldn’t argue with Sing. After all, Eiji was an exchange student while Sing was a born and raised American kid who grew up here in New York’s Chinatown. He was a smart kid, in some of the same level classes as Eiji was despite Sing being a freshman while he himself was a junior, despite being in college for four years now. Yet on the other hand, all of that made Eiji want to protect Sing and prevent him from messing things up with reckless behavior and throwing it all away.

“But I was thinking we could have a Halloween party here in our dorm for some of our friends,” Eiji frowned as they both sat down at an empty table, “We could buy candy and Halloween food and watch scary movies in costume.”

“No one will want to hang out in our small closet for Halloween,” Sing said as he tore off the plastic of his wrap and shoved it in his mouth, “C’mon Eiji, you need to get out more.”

“Please don’t talk and eat at the same time, I can hardly understand you.”

“I  _ said _ ,” he replied swallowing, “That ya need to get out more, Eiji. You’re spending a year in New York City of all places, yet all you really do is go out to the big tourist spots a few times and then study in our dorm. Live the college life. Hell, you don’t even have Halloween in Japan, do you?”

“I don’t see how I am not  _ living the college life _ ,” Eiji said with a frown, “And we do, by the way, just not trick or treating. In Shibuya--uh, Tokyo, we have a big party.”

“Didn’t you say Tokyo’s a long way from where you’re from?”

Suddenly there was a thump beside them at the table from someone dropping their things at the free seat next to them. “What’s happening? What are you discussing about Tokyo?” the voice asked.

“Fuck off Yut Lung,” Sing scowled, “I’m talking to Eiji about our Halloween plans.”

“Well, that sounds great,” Yut Lung said as he flashed his million dollar grin, “It is this week after all, and I’ve been meaning for quite a while to ask Eiji if he’d go with me to pick out his costume. So what are our plans?”

“You’re not invited,” Sing said with a frown, turning away from him.

“Of course I am,” Yut Lung gave a fake pout. He leaned dramatically on Eiji’s shoulder, “You want me along, don’t you, Eiji?”

“Well, um, yes of course--”

“Told you,” Yut Lung stuck his tongue out. Sing rolled his eyes.

Yut Lung was also an exchange student, like Eiji, coming from Hong Kong.They had met at orientations and the international cafe events foreign students were supposed to attend. He was a bit much, but Eiji didn’t mind his company. Sing on the other hand took issue with him.

“Fine, whatever,” Sing finally said after huffing down his wrap much too quickly, “Maybe  _ you  _ can convince Eiji to go out.”

“Now why would he need convincing?” Yut Lung tilted his head, “Of  _ course _ he will go out for Halloween. Right, Eiji?”

“Well, I was thinking that--”

“Hush,” Yut Lung put a finger on his mouth, “I know just the party that you will absolutely  _ love _ .”

“I was thinking we should go to the parade,” Sing interjected.

“Surrounded by  _ millions _ of sweaty people?” Yut Lung frowned, “Poor Eiji would probably get trampled to death. I don’t think that would suit him at all.”

“You don’t?” Eiji tilted his head.

“No dear. Actually, I have been informed of several parties throughout New York City. Some are rather pricey and only allow people of a... _ certain caliber _ in,” he flashed a look at Sing, “But I can get us on the list  _ and  _ cover the prices myself.”

Yut Lung was the type of person who came from a huge family that seemed to have connections everywhere in the world. Eiji had quickly learned that he was probably more wealthy than he could possibly fathom. Still, Eiji wasn’t the type of person to care about such things.

“First of all, I hate the obnoxious way you talk,” Sing said, “And second of all, you’re just looking to go clubbing, which is far  _ less _ Eiji’s taste than a parade.”

“Clubbing?” Eiji raised his eyebrows.

“Just clubbing? Not all  _ ‘clubs’  _ are equal,” Yut Lung glared at Sing, “This would be a nice one,s I said. Not some silly rave that I’m sure he’s used to sneaking into.”

“Hey, you’re just a year older than--”

“Well, Sing  _ did _ talk about wanting to go drinking,” Eiji said, putting a finger to his mouth in contemplation, “And Yut Lung is probably right that it  _ would _ be safer. But still, I--”

“It’s absolutely  _ not _ safer,” Sing pouted.

“You don’t have to come,” Yut Lung told him.

“We’ll go,” Eiji sighed, “Just please don't fight. Halloween should be a time we have fun.”

“Of course, Eiji,” Yut Lung smiled, grasping his hand, “Now. When do you want to go shopping for costumes?”

\---

Pop up stores were a common concept in Japan, yet still the idea that these massive chains of Halloween stores existed just for the month of October was an odd concept for Eiji. People would have decorations and costumes in Japan that they could buy at the store, but it wasn’t nearly as serious as in America. A lot of times kids would just have their mother buy them cat ears or devil horns at the 100 yen stores, and that would be it.

Spirit of Halloween was where Sing insisted they go to. Yut Lung insisted that it was far too gaudy, but Eiji  _ liked _ the idea of a kitsch little Halloween shop. However, when he arrived he quickly became overwhelmed.

“That’s...a lot of costumes,” Eiji noted, eyes wide as they entered. Aisles and aisles of costumes, separated by age and gender, and he had no idea where to even start looking. Not only were there costumes but decorations of all sorts, including life sized monsters that he quickly found somewhat intimidating. A far cry from cute but simple pumpkin lights his mother would line along the windows outside their house.

“And  _ most _ are made of cheap polyester or nylon,” Yut Lung frowned.

“C’mon, lighten up,” Sing rolled his eyes.

“Whatever,” Yut Lung rolled his eyes, “I already picked out my costume anyway. You go find whatever it is you want, and I’ll help Eiji.” He grabbed Eiji’s wrist and led him to the far side of the store. Sing merely rolled his eyes back, and went straight for the costume makeup section.

“I mainly wanted to just  _ see _ a Halloween store in America,” Eiji said, “I brought my witch costume from last year in Japan. I still like it, so…”

“Yes dear, you’ve informed me,” Yut Lung waved his hand, “And it is  _ cute _ . Adorable, even. However, that reminds me of what I wanted to talk to you about  _ away _ from Sing.”

“Is there something wrong with ‘cute’?” Eiji tilted his head.

“Heavens no,” Yut Lung shook his head, “In fact, I think you should continue to play that angle as best you can.  _ However _ ...”

“However?”

“Eiji my dear, have you gotten laid  _ once _ since you’ve come to America?” 

“ _ Excuse me _ ?” Eiji replied, his face turning bright red instantly.

“You can be honest with me,” Yut Lung touched his arm gently, “I am your trusted friend, after all.”

“What--What does that have to do with Halloween? With  _ anything _ ?”

“Oh please,” Yut Lung rolled his eyes, “You’re innocent but not  _ that _ innocent, and I’ve been to Shibuya for Halloween before, so I  _ know _ it’s not a cultural thing.”

“Yes but...Well, I’m...Well, I guess we both are, but--”

“Yes, we are both two young, handsome men who appreciate the male body,” Yut Lung cut him off with an exasperated, sarcastic tone, “But you’re in New York City, one of the most progressive places in the world. You can find a man quite easily. I would know.”

“That’s--”

“Also, I haven’t informed Sing of this yet because, well, you  _ know _ how he is, but the place we’re going is specifically an all male affair.”

“You mean it’s at a gay club?” Eiji blushed.

“Well, sure. I was trying to beat around it because I know how bashful you are.”

“We should tell Sing,” Eiji shook his head, “It’s unfair to not tell him.”

“I will, and he’ll come around to it,” Yut Lung laughed under his breath, “Believe me, that boy is far from straight.”

“You shouldn’t declare others’ orientations,” Eiji frowned.

“Oh believe me. I  _ know _ ,” Yut Lung winked.

“ _ What?!” _

“Anyway, I was thinking we should go for a sort of cute-sexy for you,” Yut Lung immediately changed the subject as he started going through the costumes on the rack, “It suits your style, I think.”

“What if I say no?” Eiji frowned, “What if I’m uncomfortable with all this?”

“Well then, dear, of course I’ll stop it all. I’m no monster,” Yut Lung replied. “If you  _ really _ aren’t interested in my plans tell me so now so I can put an end to it. You can wear your little witch hat again. We can go to Sing’s silly parade or even fall back on your plan of sitting around in your cramped dorm watching some low brow horror film. So let me know...is that  _ really _ what you want?”

Eiji’s frown grew. “Let’s see what they have here.”

“Excellent,” Yut Lung smiled.

\---

“This is probably the tackiest shit you’ve ever done.”

“Yeah,” Ash didn’t argue.

“And you’re the guy who went out as some shitty sexy twilight-esque vampire that one time a number of years back.”

“I agreed with you, didn’t I?” he raised an eyebrow in annoyance, “Also you’re not the person who should talk about  _ tacky _ of all people.”

“Hey, I’m not sayin’ I’m against it,” Shorter laughed, “If anything, I’m proud of you.”

“Well,” he shrugged as he adjusted his heavy, black overcoat, “Halloween is only once a year, I guess. It’s not every night you can just go out as a vampire and outright say ‘I’m luring you back to my lair now.’ Just like you can go around with a rotting looking face.”

“I don’t look  _ rotting _ ,” Shorter protested, throwing a crumpled up piece of paper at Ash, “I look  _ colorful _ .”

“Whatever you say,” Ash laughed under his breath.

“But yeah, I’ve  _ been _ telling you it’s so much fucking fun,” Shorter threw himself down on the couch in their darkly lit living room, “Do you have any idea how cathartic it is to just be able to straight up go to a girl like ‘Hey hon, wanna come back to my place so I can eat your brains out?’ and they’re all super into it? Actually, you kinda do, because that Edward Cullen year you gotta a shit load of chicks hanging on you. Not that you don’t usually because you’re sexy as hell anyway--no homo--but like dude, you  _ especially _ got a lot as Edward.”

“I wasn’t  _ Edward _ ,” Ash corrected him, “I was that blond one.”

“Okay, whatever, you were...What was his name again?”

“I don’t remember.”

“Okay, then you were Edward,” Shorter laughed, lounging back on the couch. Ash rolled his eyes.

“So what exactly are your plans this year?” Ash changed the subject.

“I dunno,” Shorter replied, scratching his head, “I was thinking about going somewhere crowded. Easier to blend in with the crowd, no one expecting anything or seeing me slipping away with someone, ya know?”

“Sure,” Ash replied, walking over to the sofa. He pushed Shorter’s feet aside so he could sit down.

“You wanna hang tight with me that night, right?” Shorter asked, “Do you have any better ideas?”

“Not really,” he shook his head, “I’m kind of willing to just go with the flow, I guess.”

“It’ll be fun,” Shorter smacked his shoulder playfully.

“I’m sure.”

\---

“Oh my goodness Eiji, you are absolutely  _ adorable _ ,” Yut Lung practically glowed, “We really did make the correct choice.”

Eiji carefully looked at himself through the full body mirror. It was late afternoon on Halloween and he was dressed as a...werewolf or something? They weren’t exactly clear on the specifics of the costume, though Yut Lung insisted that it didn’t really matter  _ what _ he was as long as he  _ looked  _ good. He had a brown animal ears headband with little paws that went on his hands as a sort of fingerless gloves. To complete it, Yut Lung had carefully drawn whiskers and a nose on his face.

The rest of his outfit was less blatantly a costume as much as it could pass as an...interesting fashion choice. He had several necklaces on that Yut Lung had picked out for him. One was pretty blatantly a collar and one was an odd shape that was so sharp that he feared that he was going to hurt himself wearing it. He wore a tank top and tight pants that weren’t  _ abnormal _ but paired with everything somehow felt revealing and risque.

Still...he  _ did _ feel really cute. And  _ maybe _ he felt a little sexy too. Not that he’d want to admit it out loud.

“I can’t believe Eiji’s a furry,” Sing laughed, applying costume makeup to his face. 

“What’s a furry?” Eiji asked. Eiji was a little unclear as to what Sing himself was supposed to be for that matter, wearing a sort of ghostly hood and vaguely spooky clothes with little designs on his face that he didn’t really understand. Still, he looked good and Eiji guessed that it was Halloween enough.

“You really  _ are _ innocent, aren’t you?” Sing laughed so hard he nearly messed up his makeup.

“What do you mean?” he tilted his head.

“Eiji is  _ not _ a furry,” Yut Lung frowned, “And don’t worry about it.”

“What the hell are  _ you  _ supposed to be anyway?” Sing raised an eyebrow.

“I should ask the same to you.”

“I asked first,” Sing frowned.

“I’m going as a witch,” Yut Lung crossed his arms, “I just need to put my hat on.”

“Is that why you didn’t want me to wear my old costume?” Eiji accused.

“Of  _ course _ not,” Yut Lung said, sounding offended by the notion, “I would have  _ loved _ to be a coven with you. My reasons are--” he looked to Sing “--what I said in private they were.”

“You’re so weird,” Sing said. He shook his head, but not without a grin.

“Anyway,” Yut Lung ignored him, “We’re going to have a night to remember, and that’s what matters.”

\---

“Man you  _ are  _ excited,” Shorter yawns as he walks into their living room, “It’s not even close to sundown yet.”

“It’s not that,” Ash frowned, “I’m just…”

“C’mon, you of all people usually have to be dragged out of bed.”

“I couldn’t sleep well,” Ash’s scowl deepened. He was back in his vampire Halloween costume, prepared for the night as he applied his last finishing touches.

“Dude, are those acrylic nails?” Shorter asked, peeking his head over his friend’s shoulder to get a good look at his hands.

“So what if they are?”

“No, no it’s cool,” Shorter raised his hands up defensively, “I’m just surprised.”

“If I’m going to go camp, I might as well take it all the way,” he shrugged.

“Yeah, I agree,” Shorter said defensively, “Though you make me feel bad that I was just gonna more or less go out as...well, myself.”

“I think that works, though,” Ash said, “You usually have to cover your face in extensive makeup if you want to go outside. I don’t. 

“Yeah I guess,” Shorter laughed, scratching at the stitches across his forehead, “I can be a sexy zombie.”

“I dunno about  _ sexy, _ ” Ash teased as he adjusted his hair, “But if you want, I can lend you a coat that might give more of a Beetlejuice feel.”

“Aw, c’mon don’t say that,” Shorter protested, “Being sexy’s part of the point!”

Ash raised an eyebrow. “I thought the point was eating people.”

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Busy with life, but trying to work on this in a timely fashion. Please be forgiving over the probable dozens of mistakes.

Eiji woke up in a place he never expected to. On the side of a street.

It was common for drunk businessmen in Japan to find themselves waking up in a pool of their own vomit in parts of Tokyo such as Shibuya or Shinjuku after a night out. It was common practice, really, and it was rare for said passed out, drunk men to be harmed or stolen from. Still, that was never Eiji. Nor was this Tokyo.

As he tried to open his eyes more widely and sit up, he realized that his head pounded. Of course it would, he thought to himself, he drank quite a lot. He wasn’t super prone to hangovers, but it had happened before. He sighed, bringing a hand to his temple.

Through his pounding head, he tried his best to figure out how he could have gotten here. He appeared to still be in New York City, surrounded by high rise buildings. It seemed he was in a less crowded side street, away from a lot of foot traffic. Away from-- _ Where had he been last night? _

That’s right, he recalled, last night was Halloween. Making it the morning of November 1st. He had gone to a party in a club near Times Square that Yut Lung had brought him and Sing to. Yet this didn’t look like any side street of Times Square he had been on. How did he get from the club to this spot? His head pounded harder as he tried to think, feeling almost like a heartbeat. 

He was able to recall that he had been with Sing and Yut Lung at some club. He was dressed in a sort of werewolf costume, Yut Lung a witch, and Sing a sort of ghost. Eiji had been incredibly shy when he first walked in. It was a gay men’s party, which Eiji had expected, but despite knowing his sexuality for a long time, he was often far too shy to go to any sort of gay club. The crowded partying and grinding of men in scantily clad costumes was overwhelming for Eiji. He tried to down a few heavy drinks, but even so, he quickly realized that it wasn’t the place for him.

Did he get too drunk and wander off? Somehow stumbling where he ended up sleeping? A definite possibility, but he distinctly remembered Sing and Yut Lung staying close to him.

_ “I don’t think Eiji’s having fun,” Sing said over the loud sound of the DJ. _

_ “I--I’m fine,” Eiji shook his head. The last thing he wanted was to be a burden. _

_ “No, you’re not,” Sing protested. _

That’s right, Eiji thought. Yut Lung had been having fun, so Sing and Eiji agreed to let him stay there while the two of them would try to find somewhere else. Eiji had protested, not wanting to pull Sing away from the party, but Sing insisted that it wasn’t really his sort of scene, either.

_ “Let’s try to find somewhere more laid back,” Sing said after they had gotten out and wandered the streets, “I think that’s more your style.” _

_ “I don’t want to make you--” _

_ “Eiji, please,” Sing rolled his eyes, “This is  _ your _ year in New York.” _

_ “I guess but--” _

_ “How ‘bout that one?” Sing pointed out a bar across the street. There was music leaking out of it, but seemingly not nearly as loud as many of the nearby clubs, nor was there a line to get in. “It seems to be happening, but not  _ too _ happening, if you know what I mean.” _

_ “We can try it,” Eiji nodded. _

_ “Yeah, and if it’s lame too, we can bail.” _

_ “Right.” _

_ It wasn’t a club, nor was it specifically gay, Eiji recalled. That fact disappointed Eiji slightly, as he had deep down liked the idea of meeting someone. Still, he was too shy to admit that to Sing. The cover charge was steep, but Sing pulled out his credit card before Eiji could even think to reach for his wallet. _

_ They walked down the stairs into the basement bar. It was somewhat crowded, but not packed. The majority of people had costumes on, but some weren’t. People stood around drinking, while there was a dance floor to one end.  _

_ “Is this better?” Sing asked. _

_ “Sure,” Eiji nodded. _

_ “You don’t sound super convincing,” Sing raised an eyebrow. _

_ “No, no, it is!” Eiji insisted, “Sorry, I just...Yes, this place seems good.” _

_ “Alright,” Sing shrugged, “I can get us the first round. What do you want?” _

_ “Sing, you don’t have to, you already--” _

_ “I  _ said _ , what do you want?” _

_ “A beer is fine,” Eiji relented, “An IPA. I don’t care which brand.” _

_ “Alright,” Sing hit him on the shoulder lightly as he started to head towards the bar, “Go try to find us a table or something.” _

_ So Eiji did. He managed to go through people to try to find him and Sing a place. All of the tables with seats seemed to be taken, but there were a few ledge style tables around that he could squeeze into. There was barely enough space for him and Sing both, but he could manage. _

_ “Are you Korean?” a girl asked suddenly. Eiji turned around. _

_ “Excuse me?”  _

_ “Are you from Korea?” she asked. She held a large cocktail and wore a bunny costume. Or, rather, she had big large white bunny ears and a short white dress with little relation to a rabbit. _

_ “No, I’m Japanese,” he shook his head. _

_ “I see,” she frowned, her voice somewhat slurred from alcohol, “Do you like Kpop?” _

_ “N-Not particularly.” _

_ “Oh,” she frowned, “They’re good. You look like a Kpop star.” _

_ “I-I don’t know,” was all he could answer. _

_ “Am I making you uncomfortable?” she asked. _

_ “N-No, it’s--” _

_ “Yeah, I think you are,” a voice laughed, “Kind of insensitive to go up to a random Asian guy and relate him to Kpop.” _

_ Eiji turned his head to look at the man who was talking. He was a tall young man, wearing a sort of subtle Halloween costume with face paint or prosthetics across the upper right side of his face in a sort of different shades greenish colors, creating a sort of zombie or Frankenstein look. Probably the latter, he realized, after he saw bolts on the sides of his temples and neck. He also had a purple mohawk, but Eiji couldn’t tell if it was part of the costume, or just part of his normal look. _

_ Oh yeah, and he was also Asian. Which made his criticism against the girl stand out. _

_ “Oh, sorry,” the girl said in a sort of tired, slurred tone that implied she was neither sorry nor fully aware of he surroundings. A moment later, as if forgetting her surroundings, she wandered off again, cocktail in hand. _

_ “Um, thanks I guess,” Eiji nodded politely to him. _

_ “No problem,” he smirked, “You here by yourself? My friend and I have a room in the back. Two of you wanna chill with us?” _

A buzzing in Eiji’s leg snapped him out of his train of thought. His phone was going off. A good thing--it means it wasn’t stolen. Removing his hand from his temple he reached for it from his pocket. The caller ID said it was Yut Lung, so he answered it.

“Hello?” he spoke. His voice was a lot hoarser and groggy than he expected.

“Eiji?!” the overwhelming sound of Yut Lung’s voice came through the speaker, “Eiji, is that you?!”

“Y-Yes?” he stammered, trying to sit up straighter.

“Eiji, where the  _ hell _ are you? Are you okay?” Yut Lung’s voice nearly cracked. He sounded scared, uncharacteristic for his usual cool, bougie persona he went for.

“I--I’m fine,” Eiji tried to assure him, “I’m okay. Please don’t worry about me.”

_ “WELL IT’S TOO LATE FOR THAT!” _

“E-Excuse me?” Eiji asked, “You knew that Sing and I left the club and--”

“Sing?” Yut Lung echoed, “Sing and I have  _ both _ been worried sick about you. He had  _ no  _ idea where you wandered off to. Why haven’t you answered your texts?”

Eiji frowned, “I-I don’t know, but please calm down. I’m a grown man, not some young girl who got carted away by some--”

“Don’t even play that card, Eiji,” Yut Lung practically growled, “Sing says you were with him one minute and then you vanished into thin air. Do you have  _ any _ idea how long the poor boy spent last night searching for you?”

“Wh-What?”

“ _ Where. Were. You?” _

Eiji paused for a moment, unable to respond to his friend’s question.

“Eiji,” he repeated.

“I-I guess,” Eiji pondered, “I guess I blacked out. I don’t...My head hurts.”

Yut Lung sighed audibly through the phone. “Well, where are you now?”

“I’m not sure,” he admitted.

“You’re not  _ sure _ ? Are you in someone’s bedroom? Have you been--”

“I’m on the side of the street somewhere.”

“ _ What?!” _

“I’m sorry, I don’t know either.”

“Oh my  _ god _ , Eiji,” his friend sounded frantic, “Do you have your wallet? Are you injured? Are your clothes--are they?

“Yes, I’m fine,” he reached down to his opposite pocket and confirmed his wallet’s presence, idley opening it to make sure everything was still in there, “I have everything. I’m unharmed. Just a little hungover is all. I’m fine.”

“Are you  _ sure _ ?” Yut Lung’s voice grew softer.

“Yes,” he reassured him, “I will send you the GPS of where I am, okay?”

“Okay.”

Eiji hung up the call. Immediately he noticed on his screen that he  _ was _ in fact baragged with a lot of missed calls and unopened texts. Not only from Sing and Yut Lung, but also a few from their other friends like Alex and Bones. He figured Yut Lung would contact them soon enough, so he decided he would answer them later as he opened his maps app, copied the location, and texted it to Yut Lung and Sing. Luckily he wasn’t  _ too _ far from where they had been the night before.

He sighed, deciding to stay put a little longer. As expected, Yut Lung immediately texted back for him to wait there, immediately followed by scores of texts from Sing. He could easily have made it back alone, but with how terrible his body felt he preferred waiting for his friend to come get him anyway. He sighed once more, stretching his arms and back before he attempted to stand up and find a bench or something to sit on.

It was as he shifted his legs, he felt them tangle against something. He looked down to them.

He was on top of someone’s jacket. A somewhat coarse jacket that looked old fashioned--probably part of someone’s Halloween costume.

What  _ did _ happen last night? The early night up until he went into the bar was so clear, but everything else after was so hazy. It was infuriating. He  _ never _ blacked out when drunk.

He stood up slowly, his muscles tense and joints cracking as he stretched, and picked up the jacket. It was a long overcoat, when he held it up to his shoulders the hem still brushed the ground. It had been the perfect size to protect his body from the disgusting spit and gum covered sidewalk.

It certainly wasn’t any jacket he ever bought, nor did it belong to Sing. He found it hard to imagine that if he was  _ that _ blackout drunk, he would have just stolen a jacket and laid it out so perfectly. Did someone lay it out  _ for  _ him?

He tried to think through his painful headache and clouded memories as he moved to a bench.

He remembered the bar with Sing. He remembered Sing getting them both drinks. He remembered the purple haired man with the zombie makeup approaching him, offering to let him join his friends.

_ Was this the purple haired man’s jacket? _ he suddenly wondered.

“No,” he said audibly under his breath out loud. He distinctly remembered that  _ his _ coat only went to his waist. The only reason he remembered this for sure was how he would reach into his pants pockets, which would lift up his shirt and jacket, revealing a very ripped yet also painted torso.

He also recalled that he ended up  _ not _ going with him. He  _ started  _ to make his way through the crowd, following him, but then he faintly heard Sing calling for him. He turned around to try to find his friend and ended up getting separated from the purple haired man as well. After that--

A sharp pain struck his head, causing his face to visibly flench as he clutched his temple once more. He needed water and some pain medication. He hoped Yut Lung would hurry up soon. All he wanted to do was sleep in his bed for another twelve hours. 

His phone went off again. Speak of the devil, he thought to himself as he answered it.

“Hello?”

“I’m right near the coordinates you sent. Where are you exactly?” Yut Lung said on the other end of the phone.

“I’m on a bench. Hold on, I’ll text you a picture, alright?”

“Alright.”

Soon enough, a black car pulled up right in front of him, the back door opening up automatically. Of  _ course _ Yut Lung would have his chauffeur.

“Eiji!” Yut Lung exited the car to run to him, giving him a big hug, “You have no idea how worried I was. I was about to have a heart attack, you know.”

“I’m sorry,” Eiji lightly hugged him back, “I really did not mean to worry or inconvenience you.”

“Well, you’re safe, and that’s I suppose all that matters,” Yut Lung sighed, “Let’s just get into the car, alright?”

“Alright,” Eiji nodded. He paused for a moment, wondering if he should take the coat with him or leave it behind. He clutched it tightly, deciding it was best to hold onto it for now.

“I don’t remember you having an overcoat,” Yut Lung raised an eyebrow as they settled into their seats.

“Me neither,” Eiji admitted, “Yet I found myself waking up on it.”

“Interesting,” Yut Lung pondered, “I wonder if-- _ Eiji, what in heavens happened to your neck?!” _

“Excuse me?”

“Eiji, you’re  _ bleeding _ ,” he gasped, quickly reaching for some tissues in the car.

Eiji brought his hands to his neck. Sure enough, when his left hand brushed a specific spot of his neck he felt an abrasion and flinched in pain. He brought his finger away and noticed the tiniest bit of blood on his finger. He took the tissue Yut Lung passed to him and pressed down on it for a moment before removing it to analyze. He noticed remnants of caked dried blood, but thankfully it wasn’t currently bleeding too heavily.

“Eiji, are you alright?” Yut Lung asked, frightened, “You’re worrying me.”

“I’m fine,” he brought the tissue back to the abrasion and fiddled around with his particularly sharp necklace, “I wonder if I scratched it on this one?”

“I don’t see any blood on it,” he shook his head.

“Then…”

“Shall we go to the hospital?”

“No, I’m fine,” Eiji shook his head, “I just scratched myself somehow. Probably in my sleep.”

Yut Lung frowned, wordlessly reaching into the seat pocket of the car and pulling out a small, designer pouch. He fished around in it for a few moments before pulling out a small compact mirror and giving it to Eiji.

Eiji took the compact and opened it up. 

“It doesn’t look like a scratch, Eiji.”

It was a bit difficult and awkward for him to position the mirror to his neck. As soon as he was able to perfectly position it to his neck injury he gasped, feeling as if he was a deer in the headlights. Like an oncoming truck, he felt as though he was violently hit with another memory of last night.

A blond man. Incredibly handsome and instantly alluring to Eiji, as if he was drawn to him in a way he couldn’t control. The absolute indescribable feeling Eiji felt as he took his hand and offered to go back to his place with him.

Hands shaking, he felt the compact fall from his hands and drop into his lap.

“If anything, Eiji,” Yut Lung’s voice grew very weary. He paused for a moment to swallow before starting again. “If anything, it almost looks like a vampire bit you.”

  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Twitter and Tumblr are also @wintergrew!


	3. Chapter 3

He could vaguely remember being attacked. Not by vampires, but by human men. He remembered being in pain, then slowly felt it fade away as a sudden sleepiness overcame him like a heavy blanket.

He knew he was going to die. He knew he was feeling weaker from the amount of blood he was losing. He knew when he’d finally fall asleep that he would never wake up again. He was neither scared nor remorseful. If anything, death felt like a relief that he gladly welcomed. He was content with it all ending then and there.

He was surprised to find himself opening his eyes once more, staring blankly at a white ceiling. He felt no pain, leading him to wonder if this was some sort of afterlife. The concept of existing forever felt like a hassle, yet he figured that this was at the very least better than burning in hell for all eternity. A pleasant surprise, given that he figured if there  _ was _ an afterlife, that that’s where he’d have ended up.

He blinked a few times as his eyesight came into focus. On the white ceiling he saw that there was a single light lit up. He was also vaguely aware now that he had a blanket above him and was resting on some bed. Perhaps he was in a hospital?

“You’re awake,” an unfamiliar voice called out. He turned his head and looked for whoever was speaking.

He quickly realized that this was not, in fact, a hospital. Nor did it seem to be any afterlife. Or at least, he figured that an afterlife wouldn’t look like a typical bedroom. The walls were painted a darker color than the white ceiling. He noticed a lampshade in the corner, next to a darkly colored chair. A dresser, a closet, carpeted floors. A nice enough room.

“I’m right here,” the voice laughed. He shot his head to the other side of the room. There stood a very tall, very large man that he had never seen before. He appeared to be in his 30s or so with chin length dark hair. He was dressed quite formally with a brimmed hat and all, almost looking as though he belonged half a century ago.

“Wh-Who are you?” he asked, trying to sit up in the bed, “And where am I?”

“Well, we’re in my apartment,” the man walked closer to the bed with a smile, “I found you dying on the street and decided to rescue you. You’re welcome.”

He looked down at his body.His skin was pale, paler than it had been, without a single sign of the injuries he had suffered. Not a stab mark, not a bruise, nothing. He was fairly sure he had suffered broken bones as well, yet everything about him seemed perfectly intact. He stared at his perfectly uninjured hands, feeling them tremble. Whether from shock or fear, he wasn’t sure.

“What the  _ hell _ is going on?” he managed to ask through his shaky voice.

“I’m sure you have a lot of questions,” the large man said as he sat down upon the bed, “And I will answer them all in time. But first, I have a few questions for you.”

“Excuse me? I don’t think you should--”

“What is your name?” the man asked, cutting him off.

“I…” he paused.

“Do you remember your name?” the man rephrased the question.

“O-Of course I do,” he managed to reply. It was his  _ name _ after all. No one forgets their own name. He definitely knew what his name was.

“Then what is it?” he raised an eyebrow.

An indescribable feeling of dread shot through him, straight to his chest. He felt cold, arguably colder than he did when he was dying.

“I--” he tried to answer, his hands shaking harder than they had before.

The man gave a sympathetic sigh. “It’s normal to forget,” he said, “I was hoping you’d be an exception.”

“How...How could I forget my own name? That doesn’t even make any sense? I don’t--”

“It’s fine,” he reassured him, “We can give you a new one.”

“I don’t--I can’t--,” he felt his hands balling into fists.

“When I found you, you were dumped in a burnt out fire pit, covered in ashes,” he said, “Do you remember that at all?”

“I--A little,” he frowned, “I remember being assaulted. I think by that point though, I was already…”

“So how about ‘Ash’?” he asked, “Because I was able to rise you up from the ashes?”

“Ash,” he repeated slowly, “I guess for now. Until I can…”

“Ash, you said you remember being attacked. What else do you remember? Do you remember what you were doing before then? Any childhood memories? Your family?”

He closed his eyes, trying to think. He searched, trying to recall  _ anything _ . He felt his face scrunching as he struggled. Nothing. He could feel that he  _ had _ lived a life; that he  _ had _ memories and feelings. Yet they were like helium balloons that had been let go, floating away forever out of his reach. He shook his head.

“Do you know what year it is?”

He shook his head again. “No.”

“It’s November 1, 1987. The day after Halloween. Do you know what Halloween is?”

“Yes,” he nodded.

“Good,” he smiled a big toothy smile, “Then perhaps you can remember what a vampire is?”

\---

**Halloween, present day.**

“Any zombie friends of yours meeting up with us?” Ash asked as they exited their apartment.

“Any vampire friends of yours?” Shorter raised an eyebrow.

Ash gave a look of disgust. “Of course not,” he said.

“Then that’s your answer,” he smirked.

Ash didn’t have many fellow undead friends, be they vampire or zombie. Not that he had  _ any _ human friends, for that matter. Yet still, he tended to find most of his kind somewhat...unbearable. He  _ had _ to put up with fellow vampires every once in a while, especially when summoned, but it was something he always dreaded. 

Shorter claimed to be the same way. He hated most vampires because he thought they were for the most part pretentious assholes who looked down at zombies. To be fair, Ash himself did find most zombies absolutely grotesque, though he would never admit that to Shorter. At the same time, Shorter  _ did _ have fellow zombie friends who would show up every once in a while at their place. Ash didn’t mind as long as they didn’t eat in their apartment. He could barely deal with one zombie’s eating habits.

Sure, vampires “ate” by killing humans, too. Yet instead of violently ripping people apart and to consume them, vampires would suck the blood out of their victims  _ neatly _ .

As they walked outside into the Halloween night, there were already plenty of people dressed in costumes. A group of college friends laughing in a group. A mother and father holding the hands of their two small children. A little boy of about three dressed up as a bee and his slightly older sister dressed as an angel. 

“Hey Shorter,” Ash pondered.

“Hm?”

“Do you ever...You know.”

“What?”

“Feel bad...about this.”

Shorter paused for a moment. “I mean sure,” he replied, “But we deserve to live, too, don’t we? We’re carnivores who need to eat, too.”

“Yeah.”

“And, y’know, I typically go for guys who seem like real assholes. Not just ordinary people who seem to have their whole life ahead of them,” he continued, “Halloween being the one exception. Given so many zombies and vamps just kill indiscriminately  _ all  _ the time, I think having one day where I just kinda go wild isn’t that bad.”

“Right.”

“But even still, it’s not like I would go after, say, that family over there,” he quickly added, pointing to the young family Ash took notice of, “Hurting a kid just feels...wrong.”

“Of course,” Ash nodded, “Standards are good.”

“What about you?” Shorter asked, “Do you feel bad constantly sucking humans dry to survive?”

The little girl in the angel costume started laughing about something. She started jumping in place, grabbing her mother’s arm.

“No,” Ash said, turning his head away from them.

\---

**1987**

“This isn’t funny,” he said, voice cracking.

“I didn’t think it was,” the man raised an eyebrow, “But if you don’t believe me, feel your teeth. You should have quite pointy fangs now.”

“I don’t know what sort of game or joke you’re playing, but it needs to stop,” Ash refused to comply, “But this ends now. Tell me what the hell is going on  _ now _ .”

“I did,” he said, “I found you dying on the side of the street. I decided to save your life. You were too badly hurt for any human hospital to save you, so I took it upon myself to save you the only way I could.”

“That doesn’t even make any sense,” Ash shook his head in bewilderment, “Even if vampires  _ were  _ real, your kind  _ eats _ people--”

“We drink blood,” he cut him off, “Eating people is for zombies. Quite a distinct difference.”

“Whatever!” Ash found himself getting angry, “Why the hell would you save me? Why didn’t you just, I dunno, drink all my blood?”

“Well, first of all, you had been bleeding for quite a while. It had spilled all over the dirty sidewalk. No offense, but no self respecting vampire would wish to drink that,” he explained, “And second of all...I felt that it was right.”

“Right?”

“I saw the fight earlier, although I decided to not intervene at the time, which I now apologize for,” he explained, “You alone against quite a few other men. Of course, you are able to remember that you  _ lost _ but before you did you were able to hold your own quite well. Impressively so, in fact. Do you remember?”

Ash closed his eye. “It’s blurry.”

“Right,” he continued, “I thought it was a pity for you to just die like that, so I decided to help you.”

“What about the others?” Ash asked, “You just let them go?”

“Of course not,” he smirked.

“Then…?”

“You must be getting thirsty,” he stood up from the side of the bed, “Why don’t we give you your first drink?”

\---

**Halloween, Present Day**

“Already?” Ash scrunched his nose. They had been separated from each other in the crowd for a while, and naturally when they found each other again Shorter was covered in blood.

“Hey, I told you that Halloween is the one day I like to go wild,” Shorter grinned, wiping the blood on his mouth onto his sleeve. People passed them thinking nothing of it. Why would they? This was the night a lot of people were covered in fake blood. “I always forget you vampires only need one person sucked dry and you’re good for a while.”

“Or maybe it’s you zombies that aren’t ever satisfied,” Ash joked.

“You know, I always meant to ask,” Shorter lightly grabbed Ash’s arm to lead him a certain way down the street, “Since for you guys one person is enough to hold you over, why don’t you just...I dunno, take a little non-lethal amount of blood from a lot of people?”

“Why don’t you just ask someone if they’ll rip their arm off for you?” Ash raised an eyebrow.

“You know what I mean.”

Ash didn’t answer right away as he pondered the question for a minute. “I dunno,” he said finally, “I guess when we’re that ravenous it’s a little...too hard.”

“I see.”

“So who was your first poor victim of the night?” Ash quickly diverted the subject back.

“Nah, not a ‘poor victim’,” Shorter laughed, “Some drunk asshole in a really fucking racist Chinese caricature costume. He taped back his eyes and started yelling ‘ching chong’ at me.”

“Nice.”

“Right? Sure picked the wrong person to do that to,” Shorter’s bloody grin grew, “Anyway, I’d still rather kinda stay away from that area for the rest of the night, just in case. Wanna go hang and scope people out in some bar? Just a low-key one.”

“Sounds good to me,” he said, grinning a wide fang-toothed grin. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why 1987? That's the year he died in the manga.

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you think! I kind of tried experimenting how to write Yut Lung in a sort of "he always had a good life" au. Not sure if I like it, honestly.
> 
> Ash and Shorter do kill people, but they do because they have to to survive. Kind of like canon but in a completely different context haha. It'll be explored more, don't worry. I won't just leave it at them being horrible murderers.


End file.
